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had, no doubt, followed Nancy’s exploits as an amateur detective.
    At that moment a slender dark-haired man with long sideburns came from a room off the hallway marked Office. The assistant introduced him as Mr. Basswood.
    As the shop owner asked graciously if he could help the girls, Nancy found it hard to believe that he was deliberately cheating Mrs. Merriam.
    In her disguised voice, Debbie Lynbrook asked, “May we look around? You have so many beautiful things here it will be hard to decide what to buy.”
    The two men followed the girls closely as they wandered about, exclaiming over beautiful porcelain objects and fine old paintings. Nancy was fascinated by the lovely statuettes, but when she picked one up and looked at the price, she was astonished.
    “I’d have to be very wealthy to buy it!” she said to herself.
    Mr. Atkin had gone to the front door and was requesting a stout woman to sign the register. After doing so, the customer went directly to the rare books section. Nancy herself was looking over the collection. The customer paid no attention to Mr. Basswood and instead addressed herself to Nancy.
    “I can’t decide between this green leather volume and the red-and-gold one.”
    Nancy wondered if the woman was buying the volume for the cover or the contents. She asked, “Do you like poetry?”
    The stout woman giggled. “Only if it’s about love.”
    Nancy examined the two books. The red- and gold-covered volume was in Old English dialect. She was sure the woman would not be able to read it. The green volume, she discovered, did have some love poems.
    “I think you’d like this one,” she said, handing it over.
    “Very well. I’ll buy it. Would you mind wrapping it for me?”
    Nancy smiled. “I think Mr. Basswood will want to do that.” She beckoned him to come forward.
    He was just in time to hear the stout woman say, “Oh, salesmen make me nervous. I much prefer women clerks.” Nevertheless, the customer trotted off after Mr. Basswood.
    Nancy continued to examine the rare volumes. She hoped one of them might contain the name Merriam written inside but none did.
    Suddenly a male voice said, “Can you help me? I’m looking for a small painting to give my wife for our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.”
    Nancy caught Mr. Basswood looking at her out of the corner of his eye. Apparently he wondered what she would say. She decided to take a chance on making the sale for him.
    “How about that one on the wall over there?” she suggested. “It’s a cheerful scene of the Mediterranean and has a beautiful silver frame.”
    “You’re absolutely right. I like your taste.” He walked over, looked at the price, and said he would buy it.
    Nancy directed him to Mr. Basswood. Bess and George, having overheard everything, were amused. They told Nancy they had found nothing they could afford.
    Bess asked, “Are you ready to go?”
    “In a minute. I want to speak to Mr. Basswood.” When he came up to the girls, Nancy said, “Mr. Basswood, I’m staying at the yacht club. It’s rather expensive. I’d love to earn money toward my bill. Could you possibly give me a job here?”

CHAPTER VII
    Four Spies
    FOR a moment Mr. Basswood stared in amazement at Nancy. Then his look of surprise vanished and he asked, “Where have you worked before?”
    “Oh no place. But I go to art school and I do know a good bit about paintings.”
    “And how about statuary?” the shop owner asked.
    “Very little,” Nancy admitted. “But if you have a catalog, I could study it.”
    Mr. Atkin had walked up. He had overheard the conversation and now looked even more unpleasant than he had before. He said nothing, however.
    Mr. Basswood asked Nancy, “What do you know about rare books?”
    “Not much,” she said, then gave him a broad smile. “But I did manage to sell a book and a painting.”
    “Yes, you did,” Mr. Basswood admitted. “Furthermore, I’ve been thinking about what the stout lady said—that